The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-10-16
BEN ISRAEL.
The Story of the Play as Told by
the Author.
no the editor Of THE HERALp.

To the Editor of THE HERALD.
OF my benefit on the play OF Ben
Israel, to be presented by the Home
Dramatic Club, you will favor me. dear
sir, by allowing me to say few words
to the public-my patrons.
The occasion of the benefit was the
financial loss which sustained several
months ago in presenting my play OF
Cromwell in various parts of the Terri
tory, carrying a large company from
place to place, at the cost OF about $125
per day, performing at places where, in
the summer season, it was not possible
to realize nearly one-half the expense.
After the completion of the Cromwell
tour, and learning of my financial loss,
the members of the Home Dramatic
Club most generously offered to play
for my benefit; thus with worthy
motive helping home talent, which the
Home Dramatic Club so well represents.
Of the play chosen for the occasion l
may note few points as preparation
of the subject and theme which Will be
presented in the performance of Ben
Israel Oh JD6 DOdIUS VI ZIG CdlI AAAO
Theatre at an early day.
The play of Ben Israel historically
commentaries the return of the Jews
to England, after a Punishment of 400
years. In the reign of the first Edward
of England, of the Norman dynasty, the
Jews were banished from England.
Those who have read Sir Walter Scott s
"Ivanhoe," in which Isaac of York and
his daughter Rebecca form so much OF
the subject and romantic interest
of that most fascinating hiSCor
ical novel, will have a fair &C
quaintance with the fearful social con-
dItion of the Jews of that period, who
had settled in England, and the horrors
of their treatment by Christian kings
and mobiles, who sought to despoll them
of their gold, by stimulating a national
crusade against them. Soon after the
time of Sir Walter SCOTS tIvanhoe, Ed
ward l., of the Norman dynasty, ban
ished the Jews, as race, from Eng
land, and they we're no more found in
that land until the times of Cromwell
and Charles IL. Under the common
wealth the Jews, who had established
themselves in Holland, encouraged by
the greatness and tolerance of Crom-
wells reign, and his peculiar favor to-
sent over to England a learned and
influential rabbi, by the name of
Man8ssah Ben Israel, to treat with
the chiefs of the wealth for the
return of the Jews to England, after
their Punishment of centuries. Crom-
we'll himself had fam not only have re-
stored them, but would also have
emanCipated them, and made the Jew
the Christians equal; and in one of
his extraordinary speeches in Parlia-
ment he treated on the gathering OF the
Jews. and applied the passages of
prophecy concerning the "ships of Tar
shish, which should bring their sons
from afsr and their daughters from the
ends of the earth, to the ships of Great
Britain. The Gideon Of the English
nation, however, was not able to &C
complish the full purpose of his Jewish
policy, bat a treaty was made with
Manassah Ben Israel, permitting the
Jews to return to England at their
pleasure. The return commenced in
CromweIi's time. A few Jewish fam
lilies came over from Holland and built
a synagogue and bought a burying
ground; and IN The reign of Charles the
Second the return OF the Jews to Eng
land was fairly accomplished; since
WHICH, LILLE INC Jomo VI HhS!dh4 Ia We
been potent factors not only in the
affairs of Europe but of all nations.
1t is of such a subject and theme that
my play of Ben Israel treats. and [ may
reasonably be allowed to think that if !
the dramatic author has thrown any
thing like the power. patbOs, and 70
nance OF Jewish character and subject !
into it that the novelist Sir Walter Scott
did into his IYanhoe, the plaV of Ben |
Israel will not be unworthy of one per
Torrance before a Salt Lake audience,
in the hands Of our talented Home
Dramatic Club, accompanied by char
acteristiC music for Jewish chorus,
composed for the play by Professor
George Careless.
I remain, respectfully,
EDW. W. TULLIDGE.